A clear mistake often present in the urban planning/design process is to consider cities as inert scenarios where the hands of a few professionals result in a successful and sustainable
place. However, cultural patterns, social interactions or energy demands differ from one place to another and they deserve an extremely sensitive consideration in planning towards the
inhabitants and their future needs.

Cities are physically expanding more rapidly than their number of new inhabitants increases, causing an impact on traffic and energy consumption per person. Residential areas become more ‘only residential’ with discussions related to the future well-being of the community, such as energy efficiency, cease to exist and are often left to the hands of a few policy-makers.

In this sense, our approach is to plan energy efficient urban communities that provide a direct benefit and return to the citizen and thus making the neighbourhood the core element to achieve a successful result. Using a system of local cooperatives (that benefit for instance from a better taxation system for energy saving and renewable energy interventions), we propose a profit share benefit to the community that becomes owner of the energy grid ensuring it evolves efficiently and respectfully with the environment.

Once the decision to create energy efficient communities has been set we propose to use a ‘UX’ or user experience methodology to move the planning process forward. This model places the user (citizen) and experiences right at the centre of the planning/design process as they are the ones who know best what are the key adaptations needed in their neighbourhood.

Quantitative and qualitative energy data is analysed in conjunction with the community in order to establish robust decisions, therefore, interventions are undertaken at local scale and with the
consent of all parts, ensuring every decision is a positive investment (financially and socially) for the locals.
We believe that the planning process towards energy efficient cities starts at the heart of communities.

Our aim in the Young Planners Workshop is to demonstrate how measures to optimise energy can be efficiently started and managed locally with a UX integrated model resulting on a direct impact on communities, consequently delivering energy efficient spaces with locals committed to energy saving measures from the beginning of the local planning process.

Today one of the most important planning problem is to link the urban planning to sustainable development. In the last years the issue of sustainability has been implemented through several methods.

The focus point is to develop a partecipated way of planning processes, starting from a local urban organization including society.

The first step is informing and bringing up citizens about Energy costs/prices and technical aspects connected to the feasibility of producing Energy using alternative sources.

The second step includes citizens’ need of being informed and actively involved in planning development processes.

After these two phases a new way of public land use could come out.

The third step focuses on the Municipality as the main actor, which could transfer citizens some areas, such as services, fringe, abandoned and disuses industrial ones and so on. All this actions will promote urban regeneration interventions.

Others actions could include the creation of multifunctional spaces which will produce “green” Energy in order to save it.

In the meantime these spaces will become meeting and sharing point not only fisically but even virtually.

Thanks to these kind of areas each community could feel as a real active part of its neighborhood.

The development and well-being of contemporary societies indicates a growing energy consumption.

The dependence of EU countries imported energy, the scarcity of energy resources and the need to limit climate change, has led the European council of 17 June 2010 to define energy efficiency as a major goal of the new strategy for sustainable growth (Directive 2012/27/EU, European Parlamient and Council, 2012).

Energy planning from the zero level studies the morphogenesis of the Lisbon Metropolitan Area by identifying typologies of urban tissues over time and different urban metabolisms, that are associated with these patterns of organization. In them circulates complex networks of flows of energy and matter, that over time, during urban development has increased the output of toxic waste, pollutants gas emissions and intensifies the climate change.

The magnitude and nature of these flows represents the impact of urban development in the environment (Bettini 1998).

The morphogenesis of the Lisbon metropolis shows:

In primary levels of evolution, it appears that the metabolism of the tissue types have lower energy consumption. This is due to the urban ecological processes which happens similarly much like in a natural way as the territory.

Currently, urban scattered and isolated tissues arise from large changes in environmental pre-existing conditions. They appear as isolated and monofunctional pieces in a fragmented puzzle, where the main means of connection are the major road infrastructures that privilege the use of the private car. The urban metabolism of these forms has been associated with high consumption of polluting energies .

This work studies the energy balance between urban growth and preservation of the natural infrastructure, seeking to respond how the morphology of lots, buildings, and roads can plan energy efficiency.

University College Cork, Programme for Planning and Sustainable Development

Bernard Dwyer, Jonathan Hall, Gregor Herda

Working Title

Can the planning system assist in strengthening the viablity of CHP systems in residential or commercial developments in Ireland?

Abtract

With the exception of Greece, Ireland is the lowest user of CHP in the EU-15 (CHP Policy Group 2006: ii). This project proposes to examine the reasons for the lack of uptake of this new technology in Ireland and make comparisons with the extent of CHP implementation in Denmark.

We will examine the importance of spatial aspects such as residential density as well as legislative and economic considerations. In particular, it will be examined whether a correlation exists between residential building types and CHP use in Denmark and elsewhere. The final proposal will put forward a viable strategy to implement a residential pilot project within the Cork region which could potentially be rolled out to other suitable developments in Ireland.

Previous research has indicated problems of implementation in Ireland on the grounds of CHP systems favouring sites with ‘steady coincident thermal and electrical demand’ such as industrial sites with large process heat while being less suited for domestic applications (Cullen & McGovern 2009). In light of the significant market penetration of residential CHP systems in Denmark and elsewhere we would like to further explore this basic assertion.

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Note

We would like to let you know beforehand that we will be away on fieldtrips from March 2nd-7th and from April 2nd-9th and will unfortunately not be unable to attend the two audio conferences. We will, however, be available at any other time.